Looming Danger Ahead
by hotdoctor
Summary: New chapter is up! Takes place after S3E05 The Canary's Song. "Then, he turned his head and caught confusion, fear and pain in her eyes as she fell heavily to the ground."
1. Prelude

_This is my first attempt, so reviews and opinions are highly appreciated._

_I thank Sardonic Wit, WAG2002 and Lady Riss from the bottom of my heart!_

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><p>The world turned in slow motion.<p>

He saw the window burst into millions of pieces and for a short moment it was like a million of diamonds were cascading into his office. Then, he turned his head and caught confusion, fear and pain in her eyes as she fell heavily to the ground.


	2. Chapter 1

Cal Lightman instantly stepped out of his office when he heard Gillian Foster's voice. She stood in the hallway and opened a big envelope Anna had just handed her.

His eyes sized up Foster. She wore a black cardigan over a blue silk shirt, a gray skirt and black high heels. For a very short moment one could clearly see his face being overwhelmed with warm emotions. He shoved his hands into his pockets and walked up to her.

"Fancy some hair of the dog, darlin'?" He retrieved a mini bottle Jack Daniel's out of his jean pocket and presented it to her.

She looked up and smiled faintly.

"It's an _effective _Irish hangover cure. I know it from personal experience! 'Course it's not a 50 year old Scotch which you and Torres seemed to enjoy last night...but...it'll do."

"I am feeling just fine." Her voice sounded harsher than usual.

"No headache? Nausea? Nothin' at all?"

She looked at him showing no visible reaction. _'He knows I'm lying but he loves the game.'_

The truth was that when she woke up that morning she wished for a quick death. And the pure sight of alcohol in his hand turned her stomach.

He bit his lower lip. "You know, the lack of any symptoms of a hangover is one of the first signs of alcoholism."

He cocked his head to the side and grinned broadly at her, a grin she couldn't help but return.

Ignoring his statement she opened the envelope and pulled out a gray file with the words _Classified_ written in capital letters on it.

"Right, deflecting." He looked at the small bottle in his hand. "See ya later mate", he said putting it back into his pocket.

Suddenly she frowned.

"What is it, luv?"

Ria Torres observed Lightman and Foster through the glass wall of the computer lab. _'They dance around each other like moths around light; afraid of getting burned yet unable to withdraw.'_

Eli Loker stopped her thoughts when he entered the lab. He gave her a cup of coffee and leaned against a desk watching her. Her head kept spinning around and felt like it was full of cotton. Ridiculously she tried to hold herself at the cup.

"So, you got drunk with Foster yesterday while I was being a hero."

Torres rolled her eyes. "Just for how long do I have to endure the heroic story of yours?"

"Are you jealous that Lightman might appreciate me more than you now?"

"What?" She turned around to him and the sudden move resulted in a piercing headache. "Ouch..." She covered her eyes with a hand.

He smiled and decided to leave the teasing for later, when she wouldn't be such an easy victim.

"So...did you have a girl talk with Foster? Some dirty secrets she revealed while drunk?"

"No," she didn't mean to answer that fast and hoped that Loker didn't catch on to it. Working with deception specialists it was frankly speaking a faint hope.

"No?" Loker didn't want to leave it at that though.

"You know, it's just...she outdrank me."

"She did what?"

"Yeah, I passed out on the couch."

"Still waters run deep." He glanced at Foster through the glass wall. "Uh-oh."

"What?"

"A hurricane is coming up."

The door flew open and Lightman entered the computer lab followed by Foster.

_'She follows him all along.' _Loker thought somewhat bitterly.

Lightman slouched into a chair and Foster stayed in the doorway. They looked at each other heavy with meaning which seemed to last for an eternity and was only interrupted by Torres trying to choke a cough. Lightman looked at Torres and she knew that he was reading her.

"What is that?" He asked.

"What is what?" Torres tried to sound as casual as possible.

He narrowed his eyes. "You're ashamed..."

Torres swallowed and Foster interfered at the right moment. "Cal."

Lightman raised his hands signalizing that he is willing to stop but couldn't help throwing a side glance at Torres who was trying her best not to give away any emotion.

"What is going on here?" Loker asked.

Lightman glanced at Foster and leaned his head onto the back of the chair, looking at the ceiling. One glance, they usually didn't need more to understand each other. And Foster knew that Lightman wanted her to talk.

"We've received classified information." She paused, instead of speaking on she put the gray file onto the table. "See for yourself."

Torres and Loker approached the table and Loker opened the file. There was a copied sheet of paper inside, most of the text was hidden under black stripes.

Loker read aloud. _"In response to your request about that person I recommend...to eliminate the potential threat...handle with extreme urgency...the mission allows for acceptable collateral damage."_

Foster pointed to the paper. "This is clearly an order for an assassination by some superior agency. However we don't know who is in danger nor when or where the assassination should take place as most of the letter is redacted. The only clue about why this was sent to us is the handwritten note on the back."

Loker turned the page. "Someone has a real bad handwriting..._Four little lie experts tried so hard to see, one saw too late and then there were three._"

"That is...uhm...creepy." Torres said.

"Brilliant expertise, Torres." Lightman mocked her.

"This is a threatening note, isn't it?" Loker put down the file. "We are the four little lie experts. Then there were three...and in the end there were none..."

There was stunned silence for a moment.

Lightman's thoughts raced into all directions simultaneously but none of them were satisfactory. He looked at Foster who obviously was on to something.

"This isn't reasonable", she said.

"Well, it's a bloody threat against my group; of course it's not _reasonable_." Lightman roared.

She gently shook her head. "No, the way it is being put. See, Loker is right. We all know this nursery rhyme and one by one people are decimated but this one stops at count three. I don't believe it is about killing us all. I believe this is a threat against one person."

"Maybe we will simply receive a new note after one of us dies." Loker said, voice tinged with bitterness.

"I don't think so", Foster insisted. "Whoever sent this, considers himself or herself superior. This person would let every single one of us know that we are going to die. No...I don't even believe this is a threat. It sounds more like a warning."

Torres became aware of an alarming thought all at once. "Do you think the assassination order is against one of us?"

Three pair of eyes riveted on Lightman.

He bared his teeth. "What? Am I the only one here to likely get assassinated?"


	3. Chapter 2

_The night before._

_Torres heard jazz music playing when she woke up._

"_Either I am drunk...or...I am riding a roller coaster..."_

_She put both hands over her eyes and tried to open them. Through her fingers she registered Foster's office._

"_This is so not my bedroom."_

_Somehow that didn't seem to bother her at first. She was even amused._

"_I am lying on the shrink's couch..."_

_When she finally understood the significance of her own words she got up with a jerk. She looked around but Foster was nowhere in sight. Torres felt embarrassed. She put her feet onto the ground and wagged her finger at them._

"_Don't you dare to betray me..."_

_Then she stood up and smiled proudly at her ability to do so. She wanted to leave the room when she heard voices from the balcony. She peered around the corner and saw Lightman and Foster standing there facing each other. Lightman was wearing a miner's helmet with the lamp shining into Foster's face._

_'When did Lightman show up?' Torres wondered._

_He clearly wasn't present when Foster and she had drank his whiskey to celebrate that they, well...her...it was solely Foster who delivered a great performance and saved Lightman's ass that day. Torres felt more and more respect for that woman. When she joined Lightman Group she believed that Foster was merely a sidekick to the brilliance of Lightman. But she realized quite fast that his brilliance depended on her more than it was apparent. Her thoughts trailed off though, when she watched her bosses being so absorbed in each other. Was that actually a real unblocked expression of an emotion on Lightman's face? Whoa..._

"_Thank you for cleaning up my mess, Gillian." He declared._

_A clearly drunk Foster rambled. "I can't wait until tomorrow."_

"_Why? What's tomorrow?"_

"_I get better looking every day."_

_She turned off his helmet lamp and they came closer and closer until they finally kissed._

_Torres opened her eyes and mouth widely. Then she turned around hasty and picked up her shoes, leaving the room silently. She was almost out of the main entrance when she realized that she forgot her handbag in Foster's office._

"_Please...no..."_

_Cautiously she sneaked back into the office and exhaled in relief when she found her bag instantly. Just at that moment she heard voices coming towards her. Panic spread across her face and she decided for the dumbest idea of all. She hid under Foster's desk right before Lightman and Foster entered the room._

_Strictly speaking Lightman entered carrying inside a giggling Foster over his shoulder. He raised her carefully and put her down on her feet, leaning her against the wall for stabilization. Their faces were only a few inches apart now. She took the miner's helmet he was still wearing and dropped it to the ground. Then she reclined her head against the wall, raising her chin. He stroked over her lips with his thumb. The lust was written in his face. His fingers gently touched her cheek, her neck and his hand rested on her throat._

"_You know this quote about the spirits, luv?"_

"_Spirits that I've cited, my commands ignore..." She snorted. "Bollocks."_

_He smiled over her attempt at a cockney accent and couldn't hide his infatuation. His breath quickened and his grip on her throat tightened. He imagined how he would push her hard against the wall and kiss her passionately. He would then grab her wrists and press them above her head so she would be in his total control and he was sure that would make him lose the remaining bits of control over his dark side. And she lived through so much already because of his lurid self._

_He released her and stepped back._

_She gave him the look children do when one takes their toy away._

"_I..." He started and grimaced. "You...you are wrecked darling and I am not a teenager anymore to take advantage of that."_

_"It's not like you still wouldn't take advantage of that, I guess, with any other...woman." She looked closely at him._

"_But you bloody are not any other woman, Gil."_

_They stared into each others' eyes for a very long time._

"_What are you afraid of Cal?"_

"_I...just don't want you to regret this when you wake up tomorrow more bollocksed than..."_

"_...than your ego?" She pointed her finger at his chest. "You aren't going to break me."_

"_I know you are a tough cookie. And besides, I would have to drown me, shoot me, stab me, quarter me, well and kill me for causing you any harm."_

"_You must have died many times then."_

"_Too many times, luv."_

"_So, you are protecting me from yourself?"_

_He looked at her with a genuine solicitude. "You deserve so much better..."_

_She looked stirred and eventually leaned her forehead on his, closing her eyes._

"_C'mon Hasselhoff, I'll take you home." He put his arm around her._

_She started laughing and her head fell on his shoulder. He also laughed and led her out of the door._

_Torres kept sitting silently under the desk for what it felt like hours._

_'I am so screwed.'_

_When she was absolutely sure there was no one beside her in the office building she got up stumbling over anything she met on her way out._


	4. Chapter 3

Foster kept staring at the strange note they had received that morning, now lying on her desk. There was something in it she couldn't quite grasp. Something so apparent that...she sighed. She was not able to focus.

When she looked up her view fell on the miner's helmet which lay on her couch. Instinctively she touched her lips.

_'Goddammit Cal...'_

In the last couple of weeks he pushed her buttons like he hardly ever had before. He stopped making her privy to almost everything that was on his mind. It was as if he deliberately wanted her to hate him.

She thought of last night and his words echoed in her head. _'You deserve so much better.'_

Was this all about to stop her from crossing the line? The line...realization rose in her that she had already crossed it. The moment she noticed him ogling Wallowski that had made her feel seriously...jealous? Really? Foster frowned.

Cal and her had grown so close over the years that it was almost impossible for her to see a clear picture of their relationship. It outreached the point up to that she was willing to see. After her divorce there were many situations where they had almost gave in to the temptation of more but one of them always called a halt before it was too late to undo the consequences. And the one of them was mostly her.

Until last night. How strange it was witnessing Cal to restrain himself when she failed self-control. She knew about his promiscuity the moment when he kissed her back then at the Pentagon after their sessions were finished.

Yes, she felt attracted to him and he sensed it. She had to draw that line. She was still happily married to Alec at that time but Cal was so nonchalant, rough and captivating...he turned her head upside down. She needed the line.

So they became friends and bit by bit she uncovered the real Cal Lightman, a person closer to her than anyone else. A person so irritating at times and clumsy in ordinary human behavior.

Then she met Dave and it was as if for only one moment she was dealing with a normal person and having a normal relationship. What a delusion.

And again the only one left at her side was Cal. But the second she was ready to consider the possibility of them coming together, he started to push her away.

Suddenly Lightman came rushing into her office and stopped in front of her desk. He started to flourish his hands to make clear a point he haven't said yet.

Foster raised her eyebrows. "I am a psychologist not a mentalist."

"Very jolly." He countered. "Look...I know you don't want to talk about last night. I am just here to inform you that I won't say a word unless, of course, you coerce me to, right."

He noticed a smile around her eyes. That was enough to make his heart skip a beat.

"So, you read between the lines of that creepy letter?" He asked.

She leaned back. "The moment it is only your life which is at stake you don't seem to care anymore, do you."

"You implying that I am suicidal?"

"Cal, someone will die if we don't act."

"And with someone you suggest me."

He noticed the worry in her eyes. As difficult as it was for him to read her, the concern was always apparent.

"You are-"

"Don't call me smothering." She snapped and shot a warning glance at him. "Don't even think about it."

He smiled. "You know, it's just...I don't like to be a play thing."

"It is just because you cannot read facial expressions on a letter." She smirked. "You don't know the rules and have no control of the game."

"Now, this is the reason I need you, luv. To figure out the things I cannot see."

Sarah knocked on the door and said. "Dr Lightman, there is a Mr Sergei who wants to see you."

He turned to Foster and asked. "Did she just say something about Navy SEALS?"

Foster gave him a reproachful look. "You simply don't _want _to understand her, do you?" She sighed. "I think Mr Sergei is waiting. Another gambling partner of yours?"

He answered with raising his eyebrows. Then he walked up to Sarah and looked at her. She held to his gaze.

"Right." He muttered. Then he turned to Foster with his back to Sarah and proclaimed. "By the way, you are a magnificent kisser, Fosta'."

"Cal!" Foster exclaimed shocked.

"What? You literally begged me to say that." He circled with his finger around his face and then turned to Sarah and grinned at her. "Let's meet the Navy SEALS then."

"I am deaf, not dumb." Sarah stated and walked out, followed by a grinning Lightman.

Foster stared after him and had to let out a nervous laugh eventually. There was no way Sarah could have understood what he said because he turned his back to her so she couldn't read his lips.

Torres watched a grinning Lightman leave Foster's office and buoyantly walk into his own. Then she slowly stepped out of the break room.

"Are you hiding?" Loker asked, startling her.

"What are you talking about?"

"About you hiding in the break room from Lightman."

"I'm not _hiding_."

"And I'm not a natural, but that was a lie."

"Don't you have any labors to do, Hercules?" She turned around and walked away.

Loker opened his mouth to say something in return but failed to come up with anything snappy. So he just mumbled "Women" and kept going on to Lightman's office. He knocked on his door and opened it without waiting for an answer.

Lightman was just shaking hands with a man in a black tracksuit and heavy gold chains around his neck. Both looked at Loker.

"At least I taught him to knock." Lightman addressed to the stranger. Then he turned to Loker. "Now stay! Good dog."

The stranger smiled and said in a heavy Eastern European accent. "I think we are done anyway, Dr Lightman."

"Yes." Lightman answered. "It was a pleasure as always. Just keep me updated, will ya."

The stranger nodded and while passing Loker he looked at him and said "Woof." Then he walked out of the office roaring with laughter.

Lightman noticed the annoyance rising in Loker and said. "Now speak, Buddy!"

"What...I am your dog now?"

"Depends, can you wag your tail?"

Loker glared at Lightman. "However...I found something in the classified letter. The black stripes on the text didn't have the same intensity. So I could figure what department the letter was sent from." He paused.

Lightman gestured with his hand. "What? Want a treat before talking on?"

"The assassination order is from the Department of Defense."

Lightman bit his lower lip and added thoughtfully "Good dog."

"What are we gonna do now?" Loker asked swallowing his anger.

"We wait." Lightman nodded and repeated vigorously while putting his hands into his pockets. "We wait." He clearly saw disappointment on Loker's face which amused him.


	5. Chapter 4

Torres was staring at her computer screen when Foster walked in.

"Ria, I need your help."

"Sure."

"I thought about this rhyme..." Foster noticed a look on Torres's face and paused. "Are you okay?"

"Yah...I'm just...you know...about last night...I just..." Torres suddenly blurted out but stopped. She genuinely felt sorry for sneaking into Foster's privacy and didn't know how to tell her without revealing the embarrassing situation.

"Look, you don't have to feel sorry for getting drunk if this is what worries you."

Torres took a deep breath. "I...I was just worried you might think I get drunk too often..."

Foster smiled tired and sighed "Believe me; you are not even close to Lightman's capers."

"Okay..." Torres compressed her lips.

Foster nodded slightly while watching Torres. Even if there was more she had to say she just made clear she didn't want to talk about it.

"Okay." Foster said. "So, this handwritten rhyme...it reminds me of someone."

"You mean you know the person who wrote it?"

Foster shrugged. "I am not sure, but I know how we could find out."

The sun was setting when Foster and Torres left the office building. They were heading at a smart pace towards Torres's SUV when suddenly a black limousine pulled up right in front them and blocked their way.

The rear door opened and a tall man in a black suit exited. He made an inviting gesture to get into the car.

"Who are you?" Torres asked but didn't receive an answer.

Instead they heard a husky male voice from the inside of the limousine.

"Dr. Foster, would you mind a ride?"

Torres glanced at Foster and the expression she caught on her face told her that Foster recognized the voice. But it also showed fear.

"Who are they?" Torres asked her but again didn't receive an answer. Instead she saw clear determination. Torres shook her head. "No...no, you cannot do that."

"I'll be okay." Foster nodded as if trying to make her words sound more believable.

The tall man followed Foster inside the car and Torres noticed the bulge from a gun under his suit. The door closed and the limo set off.

Torres exhaled slowly.

The office hall was deserted when Lightman walked absently along.

He wanted to talk to her so badly. He wanted her so badly.

He still couldn't believe that he actually stopped himself yesterday when she was so willingly to give in. He never ever was able to control his animal instincts regarding sex. He promiscuously fucked every woman, whether it was his ex-wife or a murder suspect. But not the only woman he wanted more than any other.

He wanted her from the first moment he saw her. She was so different from his usual prey preference. So pure and true hearted. So bloody perfect. Too good to be true. After their sessions at the Pentagon were finished and they suddenly stopped seeing each other on a regular basis he felt that something in his life was missing. Like a bloody moth he needed her light.

So he tried to bring himself closer to her. But she instantly drew that line. In retrospect he was grateful for it, because Gillian Foster became his closest friend and family. Even for his daughter, Emily, Gillian was closer than her own mother. He somehow missed the point when they became a complete symbiosis - not only at work but also in their deepest soul.

But then he met Wallowski who gave him the feeling of being able to act free of guilt and concern because she was like him. Contaminated with darkness and sucked into a life of constant bollocks. Not being able to cut the surface nor willing to do so. He didn't want Gillian to become like that. He didn't want her to suffer. And he knew that being with him will make her suffer.

So reluctantly he pushed her away. He noticed how much it hurt her but he couldn't stop because he was afraid of hurting her even more in the future when they eventually dare to jump into more than just being friends.

He was so afraid of losing her that he behaved like a wanker. _'Great move, arse hole!'_

He looked into her dark office but she wasn't there. Then he noticed Torres in the hallway.

"Oi! Torres!"

Torres stopped but didn't dare to turn around.

"Where's Fosta'?" He asked.

When she didn't answer he walked up to her and interpenetrated her with his look. His expression hardened and he asked forcefully. "Where is Foster?"


	6. Chapter 5

Foster was sitting in the back seat of the limousine opposite the man she had working for seven years ago. He stared outside the window at the passing lights of Washington D.C. while she was studying him.

His short gray hair, the camel hair coat, the rimless glasses, his whole appearance didn't change a bit from the day when she left the Pentagon. Dr. Johnson was her direct supervisor and the man who pulled out all the stops to make her work for the Pentagon in the first place.

He was a brilliant psychologist who taught her a lot. She used to look up to him until she realized that he was manipulative and involved in the dark deeds of the department.

Finally she asked. "What do you want from me?"

He answered without looking away from the window. "You know that I always valuated you highly Dr. Foster."

"This was not an answer to my question Dr. Johnson." She said in a firm tone.

He grinned amused and eyed her. "Working with Dr. Lightman evidently benefited your crudity."

"Working with Dr. Lightman benefited my reasoning."

He nodded and they kept speechlessness for a while.

"I believe you received internal information today." He broke the silence.

A cold shiver ran down her back. "You are saying that the assassination was ordered by the DoD?"

"Well, to rectify, you just said that. I am not saying anything."

"So I am right."

"To be right is a loose concept."

Now it was her turn to look out the window but she didn't really notice the outside. She didn't notice that they pulled up again in front of the Lightman office.

She startled when her phone rang but made no move to pick it up.

When the ringing ceased Dr. Johnson spoke. "We both know the person on whom open season was declared."

She tried hard to regain her composure. "Why?"

"Sometimes people are oblivious of sensitive information in their knowledge."

Disgust was written all over her face which didn't slip his attention.

"There is nothing you can do about it. Neither can I. I am sorry Gillian."

Lightman's heartbeat increased with every ring that passed and she didn't pick up her phone. He had the feeling to suffocate. "Pick up, Foster, pick up..."

Torres was standing in the doorway to his office and watched the fury rise in his features. She didn't dare to move nor to breathe.

Lightman gave up on the phone and concentrated his attention on Torres. "Where were you headed?"

"We...we were on the way to meet a former patient of hers, Marcus Adams..."

Lightman stepped out into the hallway where Loker was just about to leave.

"Oi! Loker! Heel!"

He went back into his office and glanced at Torres. "Have I told you to stop talking?"

"She...she definitely knew the person in the car but..."

Loker entered irritated Lightman's office but became sober when he met the upset gaze of Torres.

"But what?" Lightman snarled at her.

Torres instinctively stepped back awed. "She was afraid."

Before Lightman could digest the last bit of information his phone rang.

"Emily...No, I'm fine...What? Why? What supper?"

Emily rolled her eyes. She stood in the kitchen of her father's house, holding the phone between her head and her shoulder while she juggled with saucepans.

"Dad, are you familiar with Alzheimer's? Maybe we should test you or something before you entirely forget your own daughter."

"Has it occurred to you that maybe I would be less stressed out then."

"Very funny. I guess I dine alone tonight."

"I'm sorry, Em, I won't be home soon."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothin'. Nothin' is wrong, luv." He figured that his daughter wouldn't believe him because he wouldn't believe himself.

Emily put down the saucepan and took the phone into her hand. „Dad?"

Lightman saw Foster entering his office. "I am just fine." He said truly relieved.

"Okay, but...don't forget to eat."

"And don't you be so smothering."

"Dad, you know that you are the most smothering person on this planet, right."

"Right. Bye, luv."

He hung up and for a moment he let himself get carried away by his inexpressible concern for Foster.

"Why didn't you answer your bloody phone?" He shouted at her.

Foster only smiled kindly. Lightman's way of expressing affection was not always decent.

His voice became soft. "I'm sorry luv."

She swallowed. "I had a conversation with Dr. Johnson."

Lightman bared his teeth and and asked in disgust. „Johnson?"

"Someone from the Pentagon, I assume?" Loker asked but neither Foster nor Lightman seemed to have noticed his question.

Foster fought back her tears.

Lightman's throat tied up. "What did that son of a slag tell you?"

One single tear rolled down her cheek."He confirmed the contracted killing of a person I know."

There was deafening silence.

Then he saw the red dot in the area of her heart. _Four little lie experts tried so hard to see, one saw too late and then there were three_. Suddenly he understood that this time they were not dealing with _his _past. This time it was not about _him_. The world turned in slow motion.

He heard himself shout. "Everyone duck!"

Lightman shoved Foster back and when he turned around he saw the window burst into millions of pieces. For a short moment it was like a million of diamonds were cascading into his office. Then he turned his head and caught confusion, fear and pain in her eyes as she fell heavily to the ground.

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><p>I hope you are enjoying my story! Reviews and opinions are highly appreciated!<p> 


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging reviews!**

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><p>The diamonds touched ground with a crystal sound. Then, for a split second, the world was covered in a white light and complete silence until he became aware of his heartbeat. First muffled and far away in a distant place, inexorably approaching and growing louder. He heard her voice, limited to a whisper.<p>

"Cal..."

He remembered the first time she called him by his forename. It was a soft, breathed liaison between desire and the plea to stop. In her office at the Pentagon.

Their sessions ended about a month ago and he hadn't seen her since then. But still he couldn't stop thinking about this woman with those captivating blue eyes which looked surprised at him as he opened the door and walked into her office. She was leaning against her desk and closed the file she had in her hands. A slight but warm smile lit up her face.

Lightman closed the door behind him and covered half the distance between them only to stop awkwardly in the middle of the room. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his black suit pants and cocked his head. She wore a black pencil skirt which ended just above her angled knees. When she noticed his eyes strolling over her she put the file she was still holding on the table and crossed her fingers over her knees.

"What can I do for you Dr. Lightman?" She broke the tense silence.

He didn't know why exactly he went to see her. It was like a compulsion he had to follow. He raised his eyebrows and wiped with his hand over his lips. "I believe you have heard of my...uh..." He gestured vaguely into the room.

"Situation?" She offered with an understanding smile.

"Yes...situation", he stressed the last word and put his hands back into his pockets. "Bloody rotten situation."

She opened her mouth and nodded lightly. "So, you are leaving the Pentagon?" All her gestures symbolized non-imposed interest which invited one to open one's heart.

"Nothin' much left to hold me here, eh?"

Foster recalled the events of the past months. She was forced to stop Lightman through their sessions from blowing the whistle about a gone wrong mission in the Irish counter terror division. A threat against Lightman's family was the leverage. A threat that he was not aware of and which had weighed heavily on her. So their sessions ended with the requested result. Lightman did not blow the whistle. A fact that nagged on him until it burst out in inappropriate behavior towards the wrong people in a wrong situation. Rumors about his dismissal spread around the department. And she figured once more that his adamant search for the truth must have an origin in a personal trauma.

"How are your wife and Emily?" She almost bit on her lip after the question left her mouth because of the distancing from Zoe in her words by not mentioning her name.

"Good." He thought of the heated quarrel with Zoe that morning after Emily left for school. At least they still had the decency to wait with breathing fire and brimstone until their daughter was out of earshot. Not that they had anything worthy to say to each other anymore. Just repeated words of bitterness. "How is Mr Fosta'?"

"Good." She thought of the silent breakfast Alec and her had that morning. They were not able to have children. She was not able to have children. The adoption procedure was tedious and somehow she couldn't get rid of the feeling that he blamed her. Of course he didn't openly, but he failed to give her the reassuring feeling either that it wasn't her fault.

Lightman and Foster both understood quite well that their answers were lies. Suddenly the room was electrified.

He imperceptibly closed the space between them and was facing her from a dangerous closeness. Foster placed her hands on the desk on which she was leaning, trying hard not to lose ground. But when his knee coincidentally touched hers, she instinctively opened her legs. It was just a subtle move that wouldn't have attracted the attention of most of the people. Lightman noticed it naturally. As he noticed her soft blush and her silent exhalation. She was aroused. And by all means no less than he was.

Lightman took his left hand out of his pocket and placed it cautiously on her right thigh. He felt the warmth of her skin through the fabric of the skirt. She closed her eyes and inhaled sharply. The electricity that sparkled between them was almost unbearable. He moved his hand slowly down until he touched the naked skin of her knee. When he looked at her it was the first time in a long, very long while, that he observed a face and saw just the beauty without even trying to read it. She opened her eyes and met his admiring gaze. Before she could regain control of the situation his hand pushed the cloth of her skirt further up revealing more of her naked skin. Her breath became fitful and an almost inaudible moan escaped her lips.

Her lips. He knew this could ruin it all but he wasn't able to restrain himself from kissing her. The moment his lips touched hers, she fell into the sensation of a completely new feeling. It felt so perfect as if she was waiting all her life just for this moment. As if nothing could fail. She was no longer scared to fall. She was no longer scared at all. Until she remembered that she was in the middle of a completely different life with a completely different man. Lightman felt her body tensing up. He realized that it would take her just seconds to break the spell and he tried to absorb every precious detail of the moment. A moment which made him feel peaceful at last. He was always driven, he never could stop, he never felt complete. Until kissing this woman.

Her hands raised up to his chest and it required all her strength to break away from their kiss.

"Cal..."

This time it was a mixture of fear and confusion he heard in her voice. He opened his eyes and saw the broken window of his office. Terror spread inside of him. Terror of seeing her hurt. Terror of seeing her die. Terror of losing her.

* * *

><p><strong>AN This is the last cliffhanger. At least for this scene. Promised. What do you think?**


End file.
